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Off Beat (comics)
Off*beat is an original English-language manga authored by Jennifer Lee Quick. It is both licensed and published by Tokyopop, with one volume currently available, published September 2005. The second volume is expected in the Fall of 2006. A live presentation of the first chapter of Volume 1 is available through Tokyopop's Manga Online feature, Mangapods, though Quick herself denies being part of the project due to lack of communication.http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/35488834/?offset=30 Story Volume 1 The story of Off*beat is set in Queens, Manhattan. It begins with Christopher "Tory" Blake, a bright, nerdy and arrogent fifteen year-old boy who's hobby is to take notes on everything that happens around him every day. One day a stranger, Colin Stephens, moves into the house across the street in the middle of the night. After a year of trying to learn anything at all about that mysterious family, Tory decided to enroll at St. Peter's Academy. Which is the same private school that Colin attends. Tory's goal is to discover whatever Colin and his guardian are hiding. The mystery is not so easily solved. At school a cheerful girl named Mandy befriends Tory mostly against his will. But Colin proves difficult to get close to. Normally He is silent, withdrawn, sickly, a poor student and he seems completely apatheic toward life at school. As the story goes on, Tory's confusion about his feelings for Colin deepen. After getting nowhere with his goal at school, Tory cajoled his next door neighbor the freeloading college student Paul, into tracking down Colin's guardian's license plate number. Through this, Tory finds out that Colin and his guardian are somehow connected to something known as "The Gaia Project". But he is unable to find out anything more. Despite these setbacks, Tory does not give up. He plots to get closer to the mysterious boy by getting their Physics teacher to start a peer tutoring program to help bring their class average up on the upcoming standardized tests. The two worst students in the class, Colin and Mandy are forced to form a study group with Tory as their tutor under this new program. Volume 1 ends with a cliffhanger; As the two boys are walking home from the library alone, Colin suddenly asks the question: "Why are you always around? What are you trying to do?" While in its obvious nascent stages, the story is already showing signs of leaning towards shōnen-ai, demonstrated by Tory's constant explanation of the lengths he is willing to follow Colin, and the blush that often crosses his face in the boy's presence. Cast Christopher "Tory" Blake An antisocial self-proclaimed genius with a photographic memory. Tory is a boy so unchallenged by academics that he resorts to other means of exhausting his energy. He keeps tabs on every event in his life, recording the exact time (down to the minute or second) and place in which they occur. When Colin moved into the apartment across the street, his curiousity was instantly peaked. In Volume 1, Tory methodically chases after Colin, blinding himself with the prospect of uncovering his secrets; he is unwilling, at this point, to admit or understand feelings he has towards the other boy. * Birthday: August 26, 1990 * Sign: Virgo Colin Stephens The extremely quiet, mysterious, and cold boy who moves into the apartment across the street from Tory. His success in school is mediocre despite study, and he often skips classes, adding to his already poor reputation among teachers and students alike. He lives a secluded life, only leaving his home to go to church and to travel. He suffers from an ailment that causes intense coughing and shivering that may or may not be related to his involvement in The Gaia Project. He rejects Tory and Mandy's attempts to help him during a relapse of his condition. But Colin comes to accept the two during their study session at the library. * Birthday: November 18, 1989 * Sign: Scorpio * Born in South Africa * British father; half British, half Chinese mother. Amanda "Mandy" Townslan An outgoing, popular, and gossipy girl at St. Peter's who is in the same science and P.E. classes as Tory and Colin. She has an affinity for withdrawn individuals, which leads her to befriend the two boys, always willing to lend a sympathetic ear. She has trouble in physics class, but does well in social studies and history. A vegetarian, Mandy supports animal rights and hopes to find a career in social services. She also enjoys meddling in Tory and Colin's relationship. Mary Grace Blake Tory's overprotective single mother. She is the head of the graphic design department of a small advertising agency where she works, and is the owner of the apartment duplex where she and her son live together. She is mild-mannered and does not become infuriated by the fact that Paul steals food from their fridge, but worries around the clock about her son. Paul Patterson A college student who rents out the apartment above Tory's, Paul is the boy's only intellectual equal in some respects. He makes a living off graphic design, works towards a film major, and is obsessed with video games and internet porn. He is skilled with computers, able to hack files and write programs, often serving as Tory's means of collecting information on Colin. He pesters the boy for stalking Colin, but is repetitively met with defiance, which prompts him to take his leftovers. His eyes are blue. Dr. Dustin Garrets The American founder and leader of The Gaia Project, and Colin's guardian. He retired from science, but met with Colin's parents before their deaths and continued his research, taking custody of the boy after their respective passings. He cares only for his work, disregards Colin's personal interests, discourages him from making friends or spending money on frivolous things, and prevents his expulsion from school through large monetary donations. Minor Characters * Amy: One of Mandy's close friends. She despises P.E. class, and believes Mandy has strange tastes in regards to the boys she hangs out with. * Jenny: The secretary who works in the guidance counselor's office at St. Peter's. * Jeremy: A student attending St. Peter's who is easily irritated. Colin bumps into him in the hallway, and he pushes him into a locker, triggering a relapse in the boy's condition. * Mr. Brown: The guidance counselor who works at St. Peter's. * Mrs. Keplar: Tory, Colin, and Mandy's physics teacher at St. Peter's. She has a stern sense of duty and high expectations for her students, especially when it comes to state-issued examinations. She was the person who agreed to bring Tory's idea for peer tutoring before her superiors for evaluation. Trivia General * In an early conception of the story, all characters wore school uniforms.http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/34103643/?offset=20 Volume 1 * According to Tory's notes, Colin moved in across the street Saturday September 25, 2004, between 12:14 AM and 1:25 AM. * Colin's address is 346 68th St., Woodridge, Queens, New York. * The video game Tory attempts to bribe Paul with is called 1995 Fighter Zone. External links * Official Tokyopop Page for Off*beat * Jen Quick's DeviantArt page Category:Tokyopop Category:Original English-language manga Category:Manga series Category:Drama manga